The Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 2005

The Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed on 9 January 2005 in Naivasha, Kenya, was one of the most important political and historical agreements in the history of Sudan and what later became the Republic of South Sudan. It formally brought an end to the Second Sudanese Civil War, a devastating conflict that had lasted for approximately 21 years, from 1983 until 2005.

The agreement was signed between the Government of the Republic of Sudan, dominated at the time by the National Congress Party (NCP), and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A), which had been fighting for greater political rights, regional autonomy and ultimately the right of self-determination for the people of Southern Sudan.

At the signing ceremony, the agreement was formally signed by First Vice-President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, representing the Government of Sudan, and Dr. John Garang de Mabior, Chairman and Commander-in-Chief of the SPLM/A. The signing was witnessed by regional and international leaders, including Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, and United States Secretary of State Colin Powell.

The CPA was not simply a document ending a war. It was a political framework that attempted to transform Sudan's system of government, redistribute political and economic power, establish security arrangements, address the status of disputed areas such as Abyei, and—most importantly for Southern Sudan—recognize the right of the people of Southern Sudan to determine their own political future through a referendum.

The Background: Why the Peace Agreement Became Necessary

To understand the significance of the CPA, it is necessary to understand the conflict that preceded it.

Sudan had experienced serious political, economic, religious and regional tensions for decades. The relationship between the central government in Khartoum and the southern regions had been particularly difficult.

The first Sudanese civil war ended with the 1972 Addis Ababa Agreement, which provided a degree of autonomy for Southern Sudan. However, the political settlement eventually broke down.

In 1983, President Jaafar Nimeiri abolished Southern Sudan's autonomous arrangements and introduced policies that intensified tensions between the government and southern communities. The imposition and expansion of Islamic law, combined with political and economic grievances, contributed to the renewed conflict.

It was in this environment that Dr. John Garang de Mabior emerged as the leader of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/SPLA).

The SPLA began a major armed rebellion against the government in 1983. The war became one of Africa's longest and most destructive conflicts.

Millions of people were displaced, communities were destroyed, infrastructure was devastated and enormous numbers of civilians died through direct violence as well as famine, disease and displacement. Contemporary accounts commonly estimated that the conflict caused around two million deaths and displaced millions of people.

For the people of Southern Sudan, the war was not merely a military confrontation. It was increasingly connected to questions of identity, political representation, economic marginalization, control of natural resources, religion, land and the right of self-determination.

The Beginning of the Peace Process

The road to the CPA was long.

The final peace agreement signed in January 2005 was the result of years of negotiations under the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) peace process.

IGAD played a central role in bringing the Government of Sudan and the SPLM/A to the negotiating table. Kenya became the principal location for many of the negotiations, with important sessions taking place in places including Machakos and Naivasha.

A particularly important figure in the peace process was General Lazarus K. Sumbeiywo of Kenya, who served as the chief mediator for the IGAD-led negotiations. His role was critical in bringing the two sides together and helping them resolve some of the most difficult issues.

The United States, United Kingdom and Norway also played important diplomatic and political roles in supporting the peace process. The United Nations and African regional institutions likewise supported the broader process.

The Machakos Protocol — The Foundation of the CPA

One of the most important breakthroughs came on 20 July 2002, when the Government of Sudan and the SPLM/A signed the Machakos Protocol in Machakos, Kenya.

The agreement was signed after negotiations held from June to July 2002.

The Machakos Protocol established a framework for addressing some of the fundamental causes of the conflict.

Most importantly, it recognized the right of the people of Southern Sudan to self-determination.

This was a historic development.

For decades, the question of whether Southern Sudan would remain part of Sudan or pursue a separate political future had been at the heart of the conflict.

The Machakos Protocol established the principle that after a transitional period, the people of Southern Sudan would have the opportunity to choose between unity and secession through a referendum.

The protocol also addressed the sensitive relationship between state and religion, governance, constitutional arrangements and the transitional process.

It therefore became one of the foundations upon which the eventual Comprehensive Peace Agreement was built.

From Machakos to Naivasha

After the Machakos breakthrough, negotiations continued for several years.

The negotiators faced extremely difficult questions. Among them were:

• How would Sudan's government be structured?
• How would political power be shared?
• How would oil revenues be divided?
• What would happen to the armies of the two sides?
• What would happen to disputed territories?
• What would happen to Abyei?
• What would happen in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile?
• How would the ceasefire be enforced?
• What constitutional arrangements would govern the transitional period?
• How would Southern Sudan exercise its right to self-determination?

The negotiations eventually produced a series of agreements and protocols that collectively became the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.

The Major Components of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement

The CPA was not a single simple document. It was a comprehensive collection of protocols, agreements and implementation arrangements. The major components included the following.

1. Machakos Protocol

Signed on 20 July 2002, it established the broad framework for governance, the transitional period, state and religion, and the right of Southern Sudan to self-determination.

2. Security Arrangements

The parties negotiated arrangements governing their respective armed forces, the ceasefire and the establishment of Joint/Integrated Units.

The security arrangements were intended to prevent the peace agreement from immediately collapsing back into war.

3. Agreement on Wealth Sharing

The CPA recognized the importance of economic resources, particularly oil, which had become central to Sudan's economy.

The agreement established mechanisms for sharing wealth and oil revenues between the national government and the Government of Southern Sudan.

This was extremely important because a significant portion of Sudan's oil production was located in or around areas connected to Southern Sudan.

4. Agreement on Power Sharing

The CPA established arrangements under which the SPLM would participate in the national government while Southern Sudan would have its own government and institutions.

This was a fundamental change from the previous political structure. The agreement therefore created both:

• a Government of National Unity, and
• a Government of Southern Sudan.

The United States government later described the CPA as establishing power-sharing, wealth-sharing and security arrangements between the two parties.

5. Abyei Protocol

The status of Abyei was one of the most sensitive issues in the negotiations.

Abyei was a strategically and politically important territory located between northern and southern Sudan.

The CPA therefore included a separate Protocol on the Resolution of the Conflict in Abyei Area, signed on 26 May 2004.

The agreement provided for special administrative arrangements and envisaged an Abyei referendum.

Under the CPA framework, Abyei residents were to vote separately on whether Abyei would retain special administrative status in the north or become part of Bahr el Ghazal in Southern Sudan.

This provision became extremely important in the years that followed because the Abyei question remained unresolved.

6. Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile

The CPA also addressed the conflicts in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile, two areas that had strong connections with the SPLM/A during the civil war.

The agreement provided special political and constitutional arrangements intended to address grievances in those regions.

7. Permanent Ceasefire

The parties agreed to a permanent ceasefire and established mechanisms for monitoring and implementing the cessation of hostilities.

The ceasefire was intended to end the armed confrontation and allow the political provisions of the agreement to be implemented.

The Six-Year Interim Period

One of the most important elements of the CPA was the creation of a six-year interim period.

The agreement envisioned a transitional period during which Southern Sudan would exercise significant self-government while also participating in the national government.

The purpose was not simply to separate the South immediately. Instead, the agreement initially maintained Sudan as one country while creating a political transition.

During the interim period, the parties were expected to make unity attractive to the people of Southern Sudan.

At the same time, the agreement guaranteed the South's right to ultimately decide its future through a referendum.

This was one of the most remarkable features of the agreement. The CPA therefore created a pathway that could lead either to a united Sudan or an independent Southern Sudan. The final decision would belong to the people of Southern Sudan.

The Historic Signing — 9 January 2005

After years of negotiations, the final moment arrived. On 9 January 2005, the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was formally signed in Kenya. The principal signatories were:

Ali Osman Mohamed Taha

He represented the Government of Sudan. Taha was one of the most senior political figures in the Sudanese government and played a central role in the final negotiations.

Dr. John Garang de Mabior

He represented the SPLM/A. Garang was the founder and chairman of the SPLM and commander-in-chief of the SPLA. He had become the most prominent political and military figure representing the southern rebellion.

The signing ceremony was attended by prominent African and international leaders. Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki hosted the ceremony, while Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and other regional leaders participated as witnesses.

The United States was represented by Secretary of State Colin Powell, who had strongly supported the conclusion of the negotiations.

When Garang and Taha signed the agreement, they were not merely signing a political document. They were formally closing one of the bloodiest chapters in Sudan's modern history.

The Meaning of the Handshake

The image of John Garang and Ali Osman Taha signing and shaking hands became one of the defining images of Sudan's peace process.

For decades, the Sudanese government and the southern movement had been enemies on the battlefield. Now their representatives were sitting together at the negotiating table.

The agreement transformed their relationship from military confrontation toward political partnership. The NCP and SPLM were expected to participate together in a new political arrangement. The former combatants were expected to move from war toward government.

This was an enormous political transformation.

The Formation of the Government of National Unity

Following the CPA, Sudan entered a new political phase. A Government of National Unity was established.

At the same time, the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) was established as the principal governing institution of Southern Sudan during the interim period.

The agreement therefore gave Southern Sudan a much greater degree of political autonomy than it had possessed under previous arrangements. Southern institutions were developed, including legislative, executive and administrative structures.

The agreement also required broader political reforms at the national level.

John Garang Becomes First Vice-President

One of the most historic consequences of the CPA occurred on 9 July 2005, when the new political arrangements were formally inaugurated.

Omar Hassan al-Bashir remained President of Sudan, while John Garang became First Vice-President of Sudan.

Garang therefore moved from being the leader of an armed rebellion against the government to becoming one of the country's highest-ranking government officials.

The transformation was extraordinary. For decades, Garang had led an armed movement challenging the central government. Now he was sitting inside the government as First Vice-President.

The new political order also recognized Southern Sudan's autonomous government.

The Tragic Death of John Garang

Only a few weeks after becoming First Vice-President, tragedy struck.

On 30 July 2005, John Garang died when the helicopter carrying him crashed in southern Sudan after returning from Uganda.

His death shocked Sudan and the wider region. Garang had been one of the principal architects of the peace agreement and the central political figure who had guided the SPLM/A through the negotiations.

Following his death, Salva Kiir Mayardit, his deputy and a senior SPLM/A commander, succeeded him as chairman of the SPLM and became First Vice-President of Sudan.

Kiir also became President of the Government of Southern Sudan and Commander-in-Chief of the SPLA.

Garang's death therefore occurred at one of the most delicate moments in the implementation of the peace agreement.

The Referendum Promise

Perhaps the most historically important promise contained in the CPA was the commitment to hold a referendum for the people of Southern Sudan.

The agreement established that after the six-year interim period, the people of Southern Sudan would be able to choose between remaining in a united Sudan or seceding from Sudan and establishing an independent state.

The referendum was to be internationally monitored.

This provision transformed the CPA from merely a power-sharing agreement into a potential pathway toward independence.

The agreement specifically stated that the referendum would take place at the end of the six-year interim period.

The Road from the CPA to Independence

The six-year interim period began the process that ultimately led to the birth of South Sudan.

Despite serious political disputes, delays and security challenges, the referendum was eventually held in January 2011.

The result was overwhelming. The people of Southern Sudan voted overwhelmingly for independence. The referendum therefore fulfilled one of the central political promises made by the CPA in 2005.

On 9 July 2011, Southern Sudan became the independent Republic of South Sudan.

The CPA had therefore created the political and legal pathway through which the people of Southern Sudan exercised their right to self-determination.

The Historical Importance of the CPA

The Comprehensive Peace Agreement remains one of the most important agreements in the history of Africa for several reasons.

It ended the Second Sudanese Civil War

The agreement brought the principal north-south war to an end after approximately 21 years of conflict.

It created a political pathway to independence

Without the referendum provision contained in the CPA, the political road to South Sudan's independence would have been fundamentally different.

It recognized Southern Sudan's right to self-determination

This was perhaps its most important political achievement.

It created institutions of Southern self-government

The Government of Southern Sudan became an important transitional institution.

It introduced power sharing

The SPLM entered the national political system alongside the NCP.

It introduced wealth-sharing arrangements

The agreement attempted to address the economic dimension of the conflict, particularly the distribution of oil revenues.

It addressed Abyei

Although the Abyei question was not ultimately resolved, the CPA formally recognized it as a special and disputed issue requiring a separate political settlement.

It created a framework for security

The agreement established arrangements intended to separate, coordinate and eventually manage the armed forces of the former enemies.

The International Community and the Peace Agreement

The CPA was not produced by the Sudanese parties alone. The peace process involved extensive regional and international diplomacy.

The IGAD framework was central. Kenya played a particularly important role by hosting the negotiations.

The United States, United Kingdom and Norway supported the peace process politically and diplomatically. The United Nations also followed and supported the peace process.

The international community viewed the agreement as a major opportunity to end one of Africa's longest-running wars.

The presence of international and African leaders at the final ceremony reflected the enormous international significance attached to the agreement.

The Unfinished Business of the CPA

Although the CPA was historic, it did not solve every problem. Several issues remained difficult during implementation. These included:

• The final status of Abyei
• Border demarcation
• Oil production and revenue sharing
• Security arrangements
• The status of disputed areas
• Citizenship
• Relations between Sudan and the newly independent South Sudan
• Armed groups that were not fully incorporated into the peace arrangements
• Political tensions between the NCP and SPLM

The implementation process was therefore complicated.

The peace agreement successfully stopped the major north-south war and created the pathway toward self-determination, but many of its unresolved issues later contributed to tensions between Sudan and South Sudan.

The Legacy of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement

The legacy of the CPA cannot be separated from the birth of South Sudan.

When the agreement was signed on 9 January 2005, South Sudan did not yet exist as an independent country. It was still part of Sudan.

But the agreement established something enormously significant: the people of Southern Sudan would have the right to determine their political future.

Six years later, that promise was tested through a referendum. The result was a decisive vote for independence.

On 9 July 2011, South Sudan became the world's newest country at that time.

The journey from the battlefields of the Second Sudanese Civil War to the independence ceremony in Juba was therefore closely connected to the political framework established by the CPA.

Conclusion: From War to Self-Determination

The Comprehensive Peace Agreement of 9 January 2005 stands as one of the defining moments in the modern history of Sudan and South Sudan.

It was the product of years of war, negotiation, diplomacy, compromise and political struggle.

It brought together two sides that had spent decades fighting one another: the Government of Sudan and the SPLM/A.

At the center of the agreement were two men who represented these opposing sides: Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, representing the Government of Sudan, and Dr. John Garang de Mabior, representing the SPLM/A.

Behind them stood millions of Sudanese whose lives had been shaped by war.

The agreement established power-sharing, wealth-sharing, security arrangements, a ceasefire and a transitional political system. Most importantly, it recognized the right of the people of Southern Sudan to choose their own future.

The CPA did not solve every problem. It left difficult questions unresolved, particularly concerning Abyei, borders, oil and security. Nevertheless, its historical importance is undeniable.

The signing on 9 January 2005 marked the beginning of a new chapter. The referendum of January 2011 fulfilled one of its most important promises. And on 9 July 2011, the political journey initiated by the CPA culminated in the independence of the Republic of South Sudan.

For South Sudan, therefore, the Comprehensive Peace Agreement was more than a peace treaty.

It was the bridge between decades of war and the exercise of self-determination.

It was the political document that transformed the question of Southern Sudan's future from a matter of armed struggle into a question that could ultimately be decided by the people themselves.

Key Dates at a Glance